W.B. Yeats and the Natural World
"And walk among long dappled grass,
And pluck till time and times are done"
Join us for the opening of the 66th Yeats International Summer School, as acclaimed filmmaker and documentarian Alan Gilsenan reflects on ‘WB Yeats and the Natural World.’ For the first time, this opening address will be delivered by a visual artist — a fitting tribute to Yeats’s lifelong fascination with the seen and unseen forces shaping our landscape and imagination.
Over the decades, Gilsenan’s work has quietly traced the overlooked contours of Irish life, bringing fresh light to what lies beneath the surface. His experimental film-poem, A Vision: The Life and Death of WB Yeats (2013), draws on the poet’s mystical writings, inviting us to look again at Yeats’s words and the worlds they conjure.
This special event is presented by the Yeats Society Sligo in partnership with the National Library of Ireland — a collaboration that carries the spirit of the Summer School from Sligo to Dublin.
Join us in the Joly Lecture Theatre at the National Library to experience this opening address via livestream, and share in an evening of poetry, vision, and the natural world.
Alan Gilsenan is an award-winning Irish writer, filmmaker, and theatre director whose work spans documentary, feature film, and experimental cinema. His wide-ranging body of work includes Unless, his screen adaptation of Carol Shields’ final novel; The Meeting, a powerful drama based on the true story of a woman who confronts her rapist; and Meetings with Ivor, a cinema documentary exploring the life and legacy of radical psychiatrist Ivor Browne.
His experimental film-poem A Vision: A Life of WB Yeats delves into the mystical writings of Yeats, while his acclaimed documentary series Daniel O’Connell: Forgotten King of Ireland revisits the legacy of the Liberator. For Dublin’s Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI), he created ULYSSES | FILM, a striking installation inspired by James Joyce’s modernist masterpiece.
Gilsenan’s latest work, The Days of Trees, continues his fearless exploration of memory and abuse, adding to a body of work that persistently shines a light on the hidden stories of Irish life.
If our team can be of any assistance, please contact us on learning@nli.ie.
